HYDERABAD, Oct 20: Sindh Abadgar Board (SAB) president Abdul Majeed Nizamani has appealed to the newly-elected legislators to take measures to ameliorate the agriculture sector.
In a statement issued here on Saturday, Nizamani said the economy of the country would remain in doldrums if the performance of the agriculture sector was not improved.
He pointed out the acute shortage of water, low prices of agriculture products, closure of sugar mills and inordinate increase in the prices of agricultural inputs — like fertilizers, pesticides, diesel and agriculture machinery — had badly affected the farming community in Sindh.
The SAB chief urged the government to ban the import of agricultural commodities, grant export rebate on the export of sugar to enable sugar mills to start the crushing season and provide subsidy on local transport of sugar on the pattern of India.
He further demanded the sugar mills should be directed to pay dues to sugarcane growers which, according to him, had shot up to over Rs700 million.
Nizamani said the import of chilies and onion should be stopped forthwith and efforts should be made to export rice.
He suggested a debate should be held to remove reservations about the Sindh Irrigation and Drainage Authority.
He said no water projects should be constructed on the River Indus and the poisonous water of Punjab which was polluting the waters of the river should be scientifically disposed of.
Expressing concern over the increase in the price of diesel which had increased from Rs7.78 in 1999 to Rs21.37, Nizamani demanded the diesel price should be rationalized.
Commenting on the recently-promulgated ordinance about loan arrangements between haris and landlords, he said the discrimination in the ordinance should be removed.
SALARY: The finance department has issued orders to the district accounts officer, Hyderabad, to release salaries to teaching and other staff of Kotri colleges immediately.
These orders were issued on Oct 18 under instructions from the Sindh chief secretary, K. B. Rind.
The chief secretary has further directed that henceforth the salaries to the teaching and other staff of Kotri colleges should be paid from the district accounts office, Hyderabad, instead of Dadu.
It has also been learnt Rind has summoned the secretary, Sindh Professors and Lecturers Association, Prof Liaquat Aziz, to Karachi next week to discuss other problems of college teachers of the province.